Bar Exam: Young C – This Is For The Wait

Bar Exam: Young C – This Is For The Wait

A One Listen Review

If you’ve paid attention to newh2o this past year, you have heard of Young C, a heavily lyrical gospel influenced emcee from Riverside California. His last project to release was at the end of 2017, so I haven’t had the chance to review him like this. It all changes today upon his release of “This Is For The Wait,” a seven track EP while we wait for his full album to drop in the very near future.

My Bar Exam Rules – there aren’t any other than these are all notes from my true first listen. I’m a geek about hip-hop so I may pause or rewind tidbits in order to savor a moment or dissect a rhyme. Also, there may or may not be bathroom breaks. Adding any other rules is kind of crazy. Listening to music should be fun.

Real Love – We start off with a female voice reading 1 Corinthians 13. A soulful groove lays in behind with some saxophones, and Rhodes. The sound is tight, and C jumps in with some pause heavy lyrics but the momentum picks up as he gets deeper into the verse. He’s rapping about failed relationships and the distractions he’s faced in his life.

“Valentines every 14th/Those numbers show me you are not the one fo’ me/Heart break emoji’s down with the OG/OD Holy one as I slowly get back to the old me/Like Kobe in the 8 jersey/I don’t deserve it cuz I ain’t worthy/Go head and curb me I ain’t lookin for the love in you, I’m lookin’ for the love in myself/Seeing what love will do”

The lyrics are full of depth and candor and he rapidly flows over the top of this easy bed of music. The beat doesn’t change much at all once he gets going, but as an intro, it’s on point.

Consumed – On Young C’s “Vitamin C” project the instrumentals were all similar to the first track – jazzy and gospel infused. As I press play on “Consumed” I’m greeted with some modern vibes. Heavy synth work culminating in a somewhat haunting beat. C’s flow starts out a bit reserved, then follows a similar trajectory as the first track. You find him speeding up and digging in as it progresses. He’s talking about being lead by the spirit and following God’s will for his life, and along the way he’s dropping scripture references left and right like bread crumbs that lead you to the One who gave him this talent. Zayy Truman stops by for a simple hook, and C is right back in with this double time flow. His enunciation throughout is spot on and not only can you understand what he’s saying, but because of that it makes you want to rewind to hear it once more.

“I’m not caught up in the things that I used to/Won’t be consumed by the things that I used to”

Dark Days – Straight up West Coast beat here. I’m definitely hearing some Tupac influences here, from the production to the flow as well. It feels nice. Something I dig so far is how C’s vocals are produced. He doesn’t rely on ad-libs or doubling, he just jumps on the mic and rocks it. “Life or death in the power of the tongue — what is yours sayin?”

The Wait – “Tom Brady/This the way that God made me/Had to cut off everything that weighed me down I’m levitating/I got heaven inn-a-scope/Aftermath gon’ be Shady/Trying to take away my hope/Must admit it’s motivating/Cuz the plans already wrote/Lord cuz I can hear you saying there’s a breakthrough/I broke/Keep forgiving keep on praying”

From the top he hops on with this flow and keeps it going without switching it up. The song is about maintaining faith until Christ returns. Ain’t no wait if all you got is faith.

God’s Image – An upbeat horn-laden instrumental fades in at the top. C is busting up this beat with a flow about his confidence in Christ. He knows that his identity is found there and nowhere else. At this point in the record, the pace is very similar to what we’ve heard. His charisma and focus doesn’t change. He’s hitting the mark with pinpoint accuracy. It’s the familiarity of his performance mixed with the fast tempo of the instrumental that is wearing me out. Might be starting to slump here.

Church Say Amen – Just when I was hungry for a change of pace, the beat is slower with a swinging bass and some gospel vibes once more. I need to go back and take note of every scripture reference that’s dropped. We may have some sort of record, it’s amazing.

“They might try me next/I can’t disconnect/Devil on my neck/I must stay protected/Can’t go back where I left/Gotta stay connected/In that word invest/I’mma read the blessings/One way road to death/God changed my direction/Am I like the rest? Nah that ain’t no question”

This hook creates a nice break before he changes his flow and the beat switches up for verse two. This is his most versatile performance on the project. A solid way to finish the EP.

Conclusion – Young C can really bust a flow. One thing that I noticed throughout, is that he relies on double time a lot. I’m not sure that’s a bad thing, and with tracks 6 and 7 he showed that he can change it up a bit. All I’ll say is that this is some great music to get you hyped. Another thing I notice is his purely gospel-centric lyrics. The content is reminiscent of Cross Movement, the vibes are current, and the ability is tremendous.